1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to the sport of golf, and more particularly to an instrument and a method of use thereof for improving putting.
2. Description of the Related Art
When setting up a putt or lag, the golfer studies or reads the green between the ball and the hole to estimate the path of the ball to the hole, from which the target line and force of the putt is determined. The path of the ball to the hole is greatly influenced by the slope of the green. Unfortunately, the golfer's perception of the slope of the green can be quite inaccurate due to an optical illusion caused the various slopes, lines, patterns, objects and colors within the golfer's view while the golfer reads the green.
Many attempts have been made to design instruments and methodologies for their use to help golfers with their puts. In U.S. Pat. No. 6,716,109 issued Apr. 6, 2004 to Murtha, for example, a putting aid is made of a level affixed to an elongated member which in turn is capable of being detachably secured to the shaft of a putter. The level allows the putter to be more accurately held in a vertical orientation and thereby better serve as a plumb bob. One technique of using the putting aid involves positioning the vertical shaft of the putter over the ball to read the angle between the putter shaft and the horizon. Another technique involves viewing the hole and ball so that both lie along the horizon, and then positioning the vertical putter shaft so that the inner end of the elongated member is aligned with the ball while the outer end is intersects the flag stick. The slope from the ball to the hole is determined by estimating the number of ball thicknesses the elongated member is above the hole. Such golf green leveling techniques may have some utility in measuring the slope of the green in specific areas of the green.